1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to image processing and more specifically to inferring depth in stereo image pairs.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many current information systems store large quantities of digital images. For example, map applications often provide views of the surrounding area for a given map location and contain many images of streets and buildings. In some applications, three-dimensional images are included to provide depth information. This depth information enables construction of three-dimensional models of streets, buildings, or other objects that greatly enhance a user's experience.
For large-scale applications such as mapping, an automated technique for extracting depth information from images is highly desirable. Some image processing systems apply optimization techniques to automatically infer depth from stereo image pairs (i.e., “3D images”). However, these traditional techniques are very slow. Thus, there is a need for faster ways to infer depth from stereo image pairs.